Traditionally, the Next Generation uniforms made by Halloween costume companies have been atrocious in both color choice and design. However, in 2009 Rubies re-released their deluxe TNG uniforms for the first time since the show ended in 1993. These uniforms famously had the proper coloring and cut, and I jumped at the chance to get one. I got the small blue version, which fit perfectly lengthwise but was absolutely huge widthwise; apparently Rubies assumes that all Star Trek fans are horrendously overweight. Ripping the seams apart, I took in the costume almost six inches on each side of the waist and four inches on the width of each arm. I redid the darts in the front, and added stirrups to the bottom of the pants so that they could wrap around my boots and pull the costume taut across my body like it was designed to be in the show (Gene Roddenberry believed that in the 24th century, fabric was wrinkle-free). A magnet communicator pin and metal rank pips round out the look, making it difficult to tell it’s a Halloween costume.

Personal Thoughts:

I grew up watching Star Trek: The Next Generation back in the 1980s, and absolutely adored it as a kid. I'm still a big Star Trek nerd, and when some friends and I talked about cosplaying as a Star Trek group, they chose me to be Deanna. Although I was a bigger Beverly fan, I look more like Deanna, and once her character was developed more in the latter seasons of the show, I grew to admire her as well. To reflect that, I decided to do her uniform from the second half of the show when she actually was a useful character instead of just playing the "damsel" role.